Aphantasia is the inability to visualise things in your head. Try as I might, I cannot conjure up an image in my "mind's eye", whereas some people can imagine something so vivid that they could almost reach out and touch it. This is an alien concept to me - I have a vague visual impression of my memories, but I rely on photographs to really experience that memory again. It's almost like my imagination and memories consist of RAW files, and my mind can read the metadata but doesn't have the program to display the image. With this in mind, for many people having photographs of important moments is vital, and a way to transport you back to the moment.
I have created some very special memories since moving to Cornwall four years ago - coming from an inland town, many of these memories are of adventures around Cornish beaches. I would like to create images that can evoke a sense of being back at the scene, allowing me to almost reach out and touch it. To attain this, I will need photograph special scenes and represent them in a way that appeals to other senses, the most important of these being touch. It is important to create texture in these images, which is why I would like to use some alternative processes and actual parts of the beach in my images.
The main process I will use is the cyanotype process, inspired by Meghann Riepenhoff's Littoral Drift series. She uses nature and the elements to create some fascinating designs with cyanotypes. With this process, the chemicals react to UV light which means that I can expose them on the beaches and use sand, seaweed and shells to create interesting designs. The vibrant blue is also reminiscent of the ocean, and the image is fixed by running it under water, so this seems to be the perfect choice of process for this project. I would like to experiment with creating different textures using sand and other things found at the beach as well as washing the prints in seawater to see if the salt has any effect on the end result. I hope to make some large and small cyanotypes on both paper and fabric that I can bind into a book, and am interested to see what other materials will accept the chemicals - I know that egg shells work for cyanotypes, so perhaps I could try painting some sea shells. I may also try mixing sand in with the chemicals before applying to see if this tactile element adds to the texture of the piece.
There are many beaches around Cornwall that have significance to the lives of me and my family. I am interested to see if the geological differences between the north coast and the south coast will have any effect on the cyanotypes, so intend on visiting a number of beaches to test this out. I would also like to see if the salt in seawater has any impact on the end result. While at these locations, I will also take some new photographs and convert them to digital negatives in order to create more cyanotypes.
I don't want to focus solely on cyanotypes, however. The original photographs used for the cyanotype scenes will will be a wonderful addition to the bound book I will make. In addition to this, I hope to capture images that evoke other senses - perhaps some portraits of children playing on the beach, families enjoying ice creams, and macro shots of seashells.
My end products will not be fully determined until I have done my experiments - it may be that creating cyanotypes on the beach does not result in anything usable. Equally, the fabric may be the strongest component, or the simple photographs of the beaches. In any case, I hope to have a large image, preferably a cyanotype, to display in an exhibition, as well as a book comprised of smaller successful images - ideally both cyanotypes and standard photographs.
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